Metal Heart
by HyugaHiazi
Summary: 5 years after the destruction of Cell, a new threat emerges and the androids seem to be the target! Wait, isn't that backwards? Piccolo fights to save them while at the same time developing a bond with a certain android that he can't explain. Is it possible that he's falling in love with a machine? Piccolo/Android 17. Shonen-ai. Also featuring Android 18!


** Authors Note - **Wow it has been an awfully long time since I've posted anything. I think my skills are a bit rusty. Anyway, I've recently gotten back into DBZ and my mind has started taking off! Android 17 and 18 are easily my favorite characters and there is just NOT enough fan fiction that centers around them. This is going to be Yaoi so if you don't like that, please leave now. I can't do lemon or anything like that but it will involve romantic feelings between two men. Specifically Android 17/Piccolo...Weird pairing I know but I think they have the potential to have a lot of chemistry!

Anyway! I don't own Dragonball. Akira Toriyama does... (Cry) This is just my imagination running wild.

**Chapter 1**

"Che, stupid humans." Android Seventeen grumbled as he watched the two hunters flee for their lives. Seventeen had simply been out for a stroll through the trees when a gun was fired. He felt and heard the bullet ricochet off the back of his head. Naturally he was fine but it annoyed him to no end to think humans were trespassing on his land.

Apparently they had thought he was deer or something because they ran up to him in alarm asking if he was okay. "Er you okay!?" the fat one asked in his horribly annoying drawl. Seventeen just tossed a small energy blast to the men, missing on purpose but it got the point across. They started running away in fear instantly.

It wasn't often that the android got visitors out this far away from civilization. When he did, it was always the unwelcome type. Ever since Cell, the dark-haired man had secluded himself away in the woods, going as far as building a cabin to call his home. It was the closest thing to a home he'd ever had and he loved it. He furnished it with items he indefinitely "borrowed". Stealing was such an ugly word. It was the only way though. Doing it the lawful way meant he would have had to work with humans and that's just not something he could stomach.

Making his way back to his cabin, Seventeen placed his hand on the door to open it when a chill ran up the back of his neck. Instantly he turned around to survey the area as his scanners rapidly searched for whatever gave him the uneasy feeling. He didn't need to search long because from behind the trees, a figure emerged. It stood no taller than three feet and was round in shape with porcelain white skin. A brown body suit completed the look. What really got the dark-haired mans attention was the Red Ribbon Army insignia tattooed on the fat things head.

"You're…an android?" Seventeen asked bewildered. As far as he knew, all the earlier models had been destroyed by the good doctor himself.

The figure at the forest edge didn't respond. Just kept staring. It was incredibly uncomfortable. It would have been creepy had the machine not looked so clown-like.

"Come on, speak. What the hell do you want?" Seventeen was growing impatient.

Instead of speaking, the white figure's eyes started blinking a reddish color. Knowing from experience, Seventeen could deduce that the machine was checking his files on something. Then the android spoke.

"Number Seventeen. Your destruction is immanent." The thing said in a tone that sounded completely inhuman. Seventeen frowned as the clown attacked, closing the distance between them with speed that the dark-haired man easily countered. What the hell? Dodging a blow aimed for his mid section, Seventeen smashed his fist into the androids head then followed up with a flip kick which smashed it down to the ground. Adjusting his scarf, Seventeen landed back down on the ground.

"Is this some kind of joke? Your power is laughable compared to mine." He would have found this situation humorous had it not been so weird. Why did this thing laying on the ground even exist and why was it attacking him? Was Dr. Gero really that crazy? Oh wait, yes he was.

Raising itself from the rubble, the android simply attacked again without warning. It's eyes lit up as it fired two energy beams from them. Seventeen held out his hand and deflected them with his own blast. Really, the power behind this things attacks was nothing. Did it really expect to win this fight? Charging forward, he smashed his elbow into the round androids stomach causing it to double over in what looked like pain. He then knocked the machine down into the ground with both hands clasped creating a decent sized fissure in the earth. Preparing to destroy the other android, Seventeen charged a blast.

"There is no room for anymore of that retched doctors creations on this planet. Adios." However, before he could fire his blast the machine laying on the ground started glowing, his whole body turning a bright yellow. And it started laughing.

What?

"Dr. Gero's revenge will be carried out. You will not survive!"

…Oh no. This thing was going to self destruct! No matter the power difference between the two, Seventeen knew he was in trouble. This was the last line of defense for any android created by the deranged doctor . Each blast had enough power to destroy even Cell.

"No wait! What do you think you're doing!?" Seventeen yelled in panic. He threw up his energy barrier in desperation as the thing yelled back.

"Die Number Seventeen!"

_DBZ_

"Dende what's wrong?" Mr. Popo asked as he halted his flower watering. The Guardian of Earth had stood in the same spot overlooking the planet for the past 15 minutes. Something was clearly wrong because his frown had only gotten worse as time went.

"I'm…not sure Mr. Popo. I think something is happening down on Earth right now but I'm not sure exactly what it is. I can feel something evil but I don't sense any energy from it."

"I feel it too Dende. Something is happening down there." A voice spoke up from behind the young namekian. Dende turned around to see Piccolo walking up to him, his expression troubled.

"What do you think it is Piccolo?" He asked, bringing his attention back down to the Earth. The other just shook his head.

"I'm not sure kid. I have a ba-" His sentence was cut off as the sky turned dark and an enormous explosion erupted hundreds of miles from their location. The shock wave was strong enough that even as high as they were, Dende was forced to the ground and Piccolo was forced to cover his eyes with his arms. Mr. Popo braced himself on one of the trees.

"What's going on!?" Dende yelled out over the roaring wind.

"Oh my goodness!" Mr. Popo said.

Piccolo just looked on as the explosion slowly died down. What on earth could have caused an energy blast that large? The blast was highly concentrated but it easily had enough power to rip the Earth in half. Luckily it seemed as though the blast was far from any city so the people were safe. There was _nothing_ down there though. No energy signature to indicate what caused the attack.

"Dende I'm going to figure out what happened down there. No doubt Vegeta and the rest felt that blast so they will be headed there as well."

"Be careful Piccolo, we don't know what we're dealing with." The young namekian replied as he stood up. The older one nodded and flew off the lookout, energy trail blazing behind him. Sighing, the young green man looked down in worry. "I wish Goku were here."

_DBZ_

When Piccolo arrived to the blast sight, his breath caught in his throat as he surveyed the damage below him. He knew there used to be a forest here. He often came close to the area to meditate. Now there was just rubble as far as the eye could see. The land was flat with fragments of trees laying everywhere. A place that was once full of life now void of it. A ways to his left, Piccolo noticed a large crater. That must have been the epicenter of the blast. He flew over to it, making sure to keep his energy low in case what attacked was still in the area.

"What happened here…?" He wondered to himself. His attention was pulled as he sensed the rest of the Z warriors land next to him. Gohan, Vegeta, Krillin and Tien specifically. Vegeta of course was the first one to speak.

"Namek what the hell happened here!?" His posture and attitude would have intimidated most but Piccolo was far to used to the saiyan to care.

"I'm not sure. Dende and I could feel something from the lookout but we were unable to sense any power levels. Then this happened."

"We need to find whatever it was that did this so we can keep it from doing it again." Gohan spoke up, looking at his mentor with worry. Poor kid. The 15-year-old cared about life so much. Something like this was visibly effecting him. Piccolo could tell by the way he looked around at the damage.

"Let's break off and search the area. We might find something that could tell us more about what happened. Power up if you find anything." Tien stated calmly. The rest nodded and took off in four different directions.

Flying through the area, Piccolo was able to see the blast had destroyed miles of land. Scanning the ground below him, he almost missed the flash of orange to his right. Halting in mid-air, he narrowed his eyes at the piece of orange fabric that was caught on a broken tree branch. Why did that look so familiar to him?

"…gah!"

Piccolo's ears caught the pained gasp and he looked down to see a figure laying underneath fallen debris. As he got closer, his eyes widened in shock.

"Android Seventeen!?"

What was the android doing out here? Did he cause this destruction? Unlikely. He wouldn't be in the situation he was in if he had. Removing the rubble from covering the other, he was able to see the full extent of others injuries.

To put it simply, the android was a mess. It seemed he was unconscious now but his body was covered in horrible lacerations and burns. No doubt from the explosion. His clothing was completely destroyed, covering very little of the man. It amazed Piccolo that he was even still alive. Not even Seventeen should have been able to survive that intense explosion.

Piccolo cursed himself for not bringing a senzu bean but then remembered that Korin was running on short supply as of recent.

Picking the android up carefully, Piccolo marveled at how light the other man was. Being an android, he figured he would have been heavier.

Sending a quick mental thought to Gohan, he let him know that he found something and was heading back to the lookout. Gohan replied and said he would be right behind him. With that, Piccolo took off into the air. He had to angle the man in his arms so that his hair wasn't whipping him in the face. It was weird. Piccolo hadn't seen the android since their battle on the islands. That was five years ago. That battle had easily been the most challenge battle Piccolo had ever fought. Who knew such a small man could pack such a punch? Then randomly, this whole situation happens and Seventeen is found in the middle of it all. They would have to question the man when he woke up.

If he didn't attack them first. But that would be foolish.

Piccolo was finally able to see the lookout in the distance when the man in his arms started moving. His eyes were squeezed shut and his mouth opened in pain as his body shook. Piccolo subconsciously tightened his hold and increased his speed, angling himself upwards when he reached the pole.

Touching down on the lookout, Dende was already running over to him. As he got closer, he slowed his steps and looked on stunned.

"That's…Android Seventeen!"

Piccolo nodded and asked calmly. "Can you heal him?"

"Set him down. I'll do my best." Dende was a little hesitant to heal the android knowing his past but if Piccolo thought he needed to be healed, he wasn't going to question it. Dende quickly went to work when the man was placed on the white tiled ground. Piccolo watched on as the wounds disappeared.

"There…all done." The young namekian said as he finished his work. Piccolo nodded his thanks. He turned his head to see Gohan fly up and land next to him.

"Piccolo what did you…whoa is that who I think it is?" He asked in shock as he pointed to the sleeping man. It seemed this day was full of shocked surprises.

"Yes. I found him buried in the rubble. I don't think he was the one that did it but he was involved. Hopefully we can ask for his side of the story when he wakes up. Speaking of…Dende, why hasn't he woken up yet? He is fully healed right?" Dende shook his head in confusion.

"I'm not exactly sure Piccolo. I healed the damage but it's possible he's damaged in ways I can't heal. I can only heal organic tissue."

"So what you're saying is that his android parts might be damaged." Gohan inquired.

Dende nodded.

"We need to bring him to Bulma then. I feel like a damn taxi." Piccolo grumbled. Gohan just laughed.

"I could carry him to her if you wanted Piccolo."

Piccolo looked over the androids peaceful expression. Of all the times he'd seen the man, he had never seen him so serene. He was always cocky and on edge but never peaceful. It was…nice.

Shaking his head of those odd thoughts, Piccolo gently picked up the android and faced Gohan. "I will take care of this. You should head down and help the others continue to search for whatever did this."

Gohan nodded sharply. "Yes sir!" And with that, he took off. Piccolo smiled. Good kid.

"Thank you Dende. We'll be leaving now."

Dende nodded and Piccolo took off towards Capsule Corp.

_DBZ_

Tien looked on in horror at what lay at his feet. How could this be possible?

A few feet away from where he was standing lay a head. Wires were sticking out of the neck and smoke was still coming out of the side. What shocked him the most was the symbol on the forehead. Red Ribbon Army.

"What are we up against…?"

**Author's Note - **Alright so that's it for Chapter 1! If you couldn't tell, I took inspiration from Android 19 to create the android that blew himself up. If you liked the idea and wanna see more, please let me know in a review :) I've got a lot of ideas for this story and I'd like to update at least once a week.

Until next time then! (Fly's away)


End file.
